Determination
by E.A. Cooper
Summary: She leaves him little hints every place she goes. Post 1x13, pre 2x1.


******Title:** Determination  
******Author: **emily64cooper  
******Rating:** PG  
******Characters/Pairing:** Parker/Hardison  
******Summary:** She leaves him little hints every place she goes.  
******Author's Note:** Takes place between 1x13 - "The Second David Job" and 2x01 - "The Beantown Bailout Job". I may think about expanding each section into a full-blown chapter if you ask me to.  
******Prompt:** 08: I'm cruel.

* * *

She leaves him hints every place she goes.

Eight days after they split up, he finds a video of a woman jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. She blows the nearby security camera a quick kiss, and jumps. He only needs to see the video twice before he knows, without a doubt, that that was Parker. It takes him less than a day to get there from his temporary hideout – Nana's basement in Chicago. He's standing in the exact spot she jumped from, scrutinizing every detail, when he sees a wallet. It's got Alice White's ID and an address for a Los Angeles restaurant, the Peking Noodle.

So, Hardison grabs Alice's ID and grabs a taxi to L.A. He can't help but stop by the old office, to relive some memories. Their first job together. Old Man Leverage. The first time he thought of them as family. His first kiss with Parker. The many after that. All those times in the closet, hoping no one could hear. But he shakes his head, knowing that in his line of work, the past needs to stay in the past. When he arrives at the Peking Noodle, the man in the front lets him know that he's in one of the biggest fortune cookie factories. He laughs, almost doubling over. The man also hands him a package from Special Agent Haggen, at which Hardison smirks. Inside, Hardison finds Parker's F.B.I. badge and two tickets: One for the Bodies Exhibit, the other for the Titanic: Artifact Exhibit.

Another couple of hours on a plane, and Hardison finds himself in Las Vegas' Luxor Hotel. He hacks his way into a hotel room and gathers his gifted tickets for the only two exhibits there: Bodies and the Titanic. He winds his way through the Bodies exhibit, finding nothing Parker would consider valuable enough to steal (except maybe an alcoholic's liver, to show to Nate. Hardison takes a picture of it, and sends it and its description to the alcoholic.) Next, he tries the Titanic Artifact Exhibit. That stuff could be worth a lot for some people, he figures. Sure enough, as he's about to hand over his ticket, the alarms sound and a fair, familiar hand appears in his. "Epcot's my favorite," she whispers. She darts away before Hardison's had the chance to register what just happened. In his hand, where Parker's had just been, there's a plane ticket for Orlando. Hardison smirks, rolls his eyes, and heads to Orlando.

It's hotter than Hell here, and Hardison's pretty sure he doesn't like it. He takes another look at the map he pulled up on his smartphone – the one that includes all the secret passageways and underground tunnels, just in case (you never knew with Parker) – and heads to the lagoon. He's only ever been here once before, high school senior trip, and he was probably too wrapped up in his technology to appreciate the real beauty of the place. The time starts to near eight o'clock. By now, Hardison's visited all of Future World (he nicked a few neat things there) and all of the World Showcase's countries. He settles back into his original spot for Illuminations: Reflections of Earth fireworks display. "I've got a surprise for you," Parker says, settling in next to him. He turns toward her, a smirk on his face. "What would that be?" "Those LED screens" she gestures to them, then leans into him to whisper in his ear, "Don't be surprised if your Nana finds them in her garage in a couple of days." She kisses him then, as the fireworks finale goes off around him. It's soft and sexy and passionate, and he realizes now just how much he'd missed her touch this past week. "Parker, I-" he begins, but she's already gone, lost in the crowd of faces. There's an envelope in his pocket, and as he tears it open, he can't help but be a little frustrated she's gone. Again. Hardison pulls out a note. This time, there's no address, just a quick letter in Parker's neat handwriting:

Hardison – I'm cruel, I know. Leaving on you. I'm pretty sure you'll find me, though. If I choose to let you. If I don't… I'll be seeing you in Boston sometime soon. – Love you. Love, Parker.

Hardison was a determined man. He'd find her. One way or another, he'd find her. Whether she wanted him to or not. He slipped the note back in his pocket and turned to look at the lake. "Boston it is, Baby, Boston it is."


End file.
